TEMPE, Ariz. — Logan O’Hoppe has two journals tucked away at the top of his locker, each filled with hand-written notes about what he’s feeling. One is for baseball, and the other for life off the field.
He’s been journaling ever since 2019, giving him hundreds of pages worth of words that help him through when things aren’t going well.
“If I’m writing in it, then I’m doing alright,” O’Hoppe said. “If I’m reading, then I’m trying to find a way out.”
So far more has gone right than wrong for O’Hoppe in his baseball career, which has brought the catcher to Angels camp as the No. 1 prospect in the organization. He is just past his 23rd birthday, and he’s in the mix for a spot on the Opening Day roster.
While there is still some question about whether O’Hoppe is ready to be the Angels’ everyday catcher right now, there is no question that he will be eventually.
Even Max Stassi, whose job O’Hoppe will likely take at some point, gushes over him.
“The sky’s the limit for him,” said Stassi, whose locker is just a few feet away from O’Hoppe’s. “He’s got the physical tools. He’s going to be up here for a long time.”
O’Hoppe, who is 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, was picked by the Philadelphia Phillies out of St. John the Baptist High in West Islip, N.Y., in the 23rd round in 2018.
He had barely begun his professional career when he spent an offseason playing winter ball in Australia, which is where he began keeping those journals.
“There’s literally everything you could think of in there,” O’Hoppe said. “I have a lot of thoughts in my head, so I have to get them out.”
In terms of baseball, O’Hoppe writes down various hitting cues that help him get back to where he wants to be when his swing isn’t at its best. He said earlier this spring he went through a rut, but now he believes he’s back on track.
O’Hoppe is 6 for 25 (.240) with one homer run and three walks this spring, for an OPS of .745.
“At the plate is always a beautiful mess,” he said on Saturday. “I wasn’t too happy with the start, but I feel like it clicked a little bit the past few days. It always takes a couple weeks, and then the same thoughts come back in my head that were there last summer. I always wish it would come back sooner.”
Last summer O’Hoppe put together a season in which he hit .283 with 26 homers and a .961 OPS at Double-A. He played 75 games in the Phillies system, and then 29 after the Angels acquired him for Brandon Marsh in a trade at the deadline. He hit 11 homers just in those two months with the Angels, including an 1.147 OPS. That earned him a five-game cameo in the majors at the end of the season.
The offensive performance was certainly eye-opening because few teams have a catcher who is a significant offensive contributor. His bat, however, isn’t what draws the most praise from those around him with the Angels.
It’s his leadership.
Manager Phil Nevin cited an example from last week. Veteran lefty Tyler Anderson was scheduled to pitch in a minor league game on the Angels’ off day, and O’Hoppe “insisted” on coming in to catch Anderson that day, Nevin said.
“Most would want to take an off day,” Nevin said. “He wants to be with the guys. He wants to help them get better. That’s leadership for me, no matter what the age is.”
O’Hoppe has also learned some Spanish to help him communicate with pitchers who aren’t as comfortable with English.
“It’s all part of helping to adapt to other guys,” O’Hoppe said. “Those guys have it tough, coming over here and not knowing the language. If I can help them out, that can only help them, on and off the field.”
O’Hoppe said his journals include plenty of notes about the pitchers he’s worked with, giving him reminders about their personalities and how they like to approach hitters.
“I enjoy leading the staff and leading the group,” O’Hoppe said. “It’s something I learned at an early age. People back home growing up gave me some structure on that, and it’s something I’ve always worked on.”
O’Hoppe’s physical tools, at the plate and behind it, to go with his makeup, leave no doubt within the organization that he’s a major leaguer.
“As far as what we’ve seen here, his preparation, the way he handles the pitchers I think he’s ready to play here,” Nevin said. “I don’t think there’s any question about that. Offensively, I don’t know. He’s certainly put up good numbers in the minor leagues. We wouldn’t have brought him up last year if we didn’t think he was ready to handle that. And we’re certainly thinking the same thing now. He’s in the mix.”
That’s as far as Nevin is willing to go because the Angels still have some tough decisions to make about their catching situation.
Stassi might have had a disappointing season in 2022, but the Angels appreciate how he handles the pitching staff and believe he’ll rebound offensively to be more like who he was in 2020 and 2021. He’s also signed for $7 million, so he’s going to remain on the roster.
While it was easy to assume that Stassi and O’Hoppe would be the two catchers, Matt Thaiss has also shown improvement this spring. An 0-for-11 stretch has dropped his average to .280, but he also has eight walks to give him an .815 OPS. A left-handed hitter, Thaiss already has a few hits on balls that would have been gobbled up by the shift before new rules went into place this year.
Thaiss is also out of options. He would certainly be claimed by another team if the Angels tried to send him to the minors, which would cost the Angels a chunk of their depth behind the plate. Chad Wallach is No. 4 on the depth chart.
The Angels could choose to keep Thaiss over O’Hoppe to protect their depth and also to get some more seasoning for O’Hoppe in the minors. They also could keep all three catchers. Thaiss was a first baseman for the first few years of his pro career, and he got some looks at other infield positions too, so he could serve as a utility player and catcher.
“We’re still looking at it,” Nevin said. “They’ve all done a fine job. I feel comfortable with all of them back there. We’ve still got a week to let things play out.”
For his part, O’Hoppe said he’s trying not to worry about the roster decisions to come.
“Just stay in the moment,” he said. “It’s all I can control. If you think about all that stuff, you’re going to drive yourself crazy.”
